[RoysGW]

Good morning! I have been looking at bikes again, and I might have found a gem. I am new into the Goldwing territory and wanted to get everyone's opinion on a Goldwing I found on craigslist.

1986 Goldwing Aspencade SEI
14,000 miles
an almost MINT bike with very low miles
Original owner
Needs new windshield, which owner has
Brand new battery
New Oil Change-Honda Synthetic Oil
Am/FM Cassette Player: Tape runs, but it doesn't flip cassette at the end.
Asking price: $5,500
*He is selling because he bought a trike and has a bad back; cannot hold up bike anymore.

Thoughts? opinions?
What would be a great deal vs good deal price wise?

 

[fossil92]

Very nice looking Wing, really low mileage (almost too low for my personal liking). The 1200's did have some mechanical gremlins (mostly the weak Stator & connection) but with the low mileage I'm sure that was never looked at. My thoughts are this: It may be a very nice Wing but for that amount of money you could no doubt find a 1500 that would be very nice as well & would be a newer machine. It would probably have more mileage on it but then again we have several guys on here that have 1500's with well over 100k miles on them & one guy in particular has almost 200k on his.

As Always this is just one Ole Fossil's opinion.

By the way Welcome to the GWOF & I sent you a PM as well. Top Right under Welcome RoysGW you'll see the messages.

 

[joe in calif]

Way to much money, low mileage isn't always a good thing, Seals can dry up and start to leak. The 1200SEI had a bigger stator than the aspencade and interstate so that shouldn't be a problem but I would add a little money and get a good 1500 Wing. If you really want this one I would have it looked at by a mechanic (or check it over yourself it you know what your looking for) my top offer would be $3000. Also remember the bike is 26 years old, parts could be a little hard to get.
Checking cycle trader and I see there is a 94 Wing with 24,000 miles for $6,000
and another 95 with 35,000 for $5800
I just think you can do better

 

[budoka]

Welcome RoysGW. I may be wrong on this, but i think the SEi model had a higher output charging system than the other 1200s did, perhaps one of our resident 1200 gurus can add to that. The stator fix is a bit of a pain, but doable. I put a ton of miles on my 1200 and that was really my only complaint I had with it...em, until two 1500s passed us on I-5 north of Redding CA. The rest as they say is history.

 

[detdrbuzzard]

hello roy, welcome to GWOF. the bigger stator on the sei was to power the fuel injection and all 1200 wings suffer from the dreaded stator problem. i like my 1200 wing but like the others have said for that amount of money you could find a 1500 wing
http://detroit.craigslist.org/wyn/mcy/3023241325.html

 

[Ron Robertson]

I just sold a friends beautiful 95 Aspencade, with 100,000 miles on it runs like new and looks like new for $5,500.00 also has a ton of extra added and a few more for the new owner to add if he wants.
I would look for a nice 1500 for that money.

 

[Scooter1]

I sold a very nice 85 SE (LTD) in February for 2200.00 and it was in very nice condition. Low miles means it has been stored most of it's life which is not good. Better to buy one that is ridden regularly and has more miles. I paid 3500 for my 1500. This bike is over priced. It's really not worth more than 3k. I think pricing on these Wings is whatever the market can bare. If you really like it pull some comps off Craig's List and send to the seller with your offer to bring him back into reality.

 

[Cantankerous]

Have you heard the bike run?

 

[RoysGW]

Thanks for the posts. I havent heard, or seen the bike in person. I was planning on riding up there to see it, but I may just pass because I doubt the owner would take $2500.

I was speaking with another member, but I am 5'7; What is everyone's thoughts on my stature and this bike? Thanks in advance for all of your help!

 

[Cantankerous]

My friend who is 5'-7" has more problems reaching the ground on the 1200 than the 1500.

 

[fossil92]

Hey Roy there are some things that vertically challenged riders can do to help them when it comes to a Wing. Most of the Custom Seat manufactures offer what they call Lo-Boy seats that get you closer to the ground. Here is another option as well in the link below.

http://www.tallmenshoes.com/boots1.html

Try to find some Wings to sit on to see what your reach will be.

 

[Scooter1]

Thanks for the posts. I havent heard, or seen the bike in person. I was planning on riding up there to see it, but I may just pass because I doubt the owner would take $2500.

I was speaking with another member, but I am 5'7; What is everyone's thoughts on my stature and this bike? Thanks in advance for all of your help!

At 5'8" I was vertically challenged with my 85 SE/LTD and nearly sold it because of that. A buddy of mine told me how I could work around it by coming down to one foot (my left) when coming to a stop and covering the back brake with right foot. I've never had a dirt bike but I think this is how one deals with it's high ground clearance. If I had a long light I'd just reverse feet and grab neutral and let go of clutch. I could easily flat foot one foot when leaned but could not do both. I got comfortable with that and it didn't bother me anymore not being able to flat foot both. However I can easily flat foot my 1500 and that's with a beaded seat cover. I prefer to flat foot both but honestly, I could get used to either one. For some that's a major issue and can be corrected with removing foam in the seat as others shared. You can also put a car tire on the rear of a 1500 but not a 1200 as it will lower the bike by 1/2 inch also.

 

[Two Wheel Wing]

Welcome to the forum from PA. Great looking bike, but in my opinion somewhat over priced. If I was going to spend that much I would look for a 1500. I think you could find a good one for a little more than that bikes asking price. Good luck..

 

[stuart ormerod]

Please excuse a contrary view from a new subsriber but this thread caught my eye on Google because I own one of these bikes.

I have owned a 1986 GL1200SEi for over 10 years and love it dearly. It has been remarkably reliable, possibly due to the fuel injection system, so no gummed-up carburettors.

This bike was the follow up to the equally gadgety GL1200 Ltd of 1985 and they were the zenith of gadgetry on a GoldWing. For example self-levelling suspension as well as a trip computer - which were rare on cars in 1986. No GoldWing has ever had as many gadgets fitted by Honda.

So although it's a potentially reliable and usable bike for regular use it is also something of a collectors item. They carried a heavy premium price when they were sold by Honda.

Value now is difficult to assess. Owners who have kept them as collectors items will not sell them cheaply and nor would I mine. They are not ordinary GL1200s. If this bike is mint it could well be worth $5,500 - but only to someone who recognises its special value. I know one UK owner who imported one of the last new ones of these in 1990 at a cost of £10,000 and he will not sell his for less than £7,000. I would not sell mine for less that £5,000 - so about $7,000. I think a GL1200SEi in good condition is worth more than a cheap (i.e. old, worn) GL1500.

The low mileage of this bike does of course suggest long periods of storage and a need for some work to prepare it for safe regular use. Assuming the engine starts and runs the fuel system will be OK once fresh fuel is flowing through it (no carburettors to strip down) but I would replace the timing belts for sure - they would be at risk of failure after a long period of disuse because they will be distorted where they sat on the tensioner rollers. The braking system might need a good service too, including seals in both master cylinders and calipers.

But if the bike has been dry-stored and is in mint condition, it should be recoverable to running condition at relatively modest cost. Kept in good condition as a collectors item it should not depreciate either.

 

[Eric]

Stuart: Jump onto the new members and introduce yourself.
As much as you love your 1200 in England and their value which is higher there, much similar to Australia. But things do not neccessary have the same value in the USA.
I brought a 1200 carby 1984 Aspencade in Australia for $5000 with 120,000 k's and then spent $3,000 on repairs. If I had done that in the USA they probally would have locked me up because they may think that I had lost my marbles. But over here a mint 1200 could bring $8,000. There was one advertised here last month for $8,000.
I have also brought a 1995 Goldwing in great condition in the USA for $5500. So you have to go by what the value is in the different countries.
I do love my old bike's and car's. You may like my restored 1951 Vauxhall Velox. It has no value here but I bet it has some value in England.
Eric

 

[stuart ormerod]

....As much as you love your 1200 in England and their value which is higher there, much similar to Australia. But things do not neccessary have the same value in the USA.....

Hi Eric,

Yes indeed, values (and levels of interest in collecting classic GoldWings) will vary enormously between countries. The state of the economy impacts on values of collectables too. In UK GoldWings have yet to captured widespread interest as collectable classic motorcycles in the way that other Japanese bikes have.

I get the impression that in the US there isn't widespread interest in old GoldWings as collectables either - although a UK friend was offered big money by a US Collector for a unque early GL1000 GoldWing Executive (a UK-only limited edition of 51 faired bikes) some years ago, because it was Number One of the numbered series. Unfortunately for both of them, the buyer was killed in the 9/11 attack so the deal fell through - and as it happens I now own that bike too.

I just wanted to flag up the 1986 GL1200 Aspencade SEi as something a bit special, that's all.

And I would love to see your restored Velox - my Dad had a 1956 Velox which he, somewhat grudgingly under pressure from my Mum, allowed me to drive on my 17th Birthday when I became eligible for a provisional driving. licence. It was the only time I ever got to drive it!

 

[Eric]

I have a 1949, 1951 and two 1957 Velox's. and another 4 cars and 4 motorcycles. My children think I will never finish them before I kick it. They could be right. Here are a couple of cars for you. The 1957 should look like your dads 1956. Eric

 

[stuart ormerod]

Velox

That brings back memories; my Dad's was blue but that's definitely the model. Column gear change as a I recall; my Dad was frightened to death that I would destroy his clutch or his gearbox so he found a lonely raod with a downhill slope and even then only let me drive it for half a mile before he took over again and we went home.

Sadly all those 1950s and 1960s Vauxhalls were rust buckets and so even in a dry part of Oz you will presumably have some metal to replace as part of your project.

The earlier car which you've finished looks very good. There is lots of interest in restoring, running and rallying (not racing!) post war cars in UK and my GoldWing Club often displayed our bikes at meetings and ralliies where cars were also being displayed. I can only remember coming across one of these 1950s Vauxhalls and that was a Wyvern.